On the heels of recent weeks when CNN has repeatedly included Republicans on bipartisan voter panels, but with those Republican members sounding more like liberals than conservatives, on Monday's Wolf program, CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer hosted a discussion with two Republican guests who both agreed with the Supreme Court's liberal ruling that bolstered same-sex marriage.
And, even though Blitzer introduced the two guests as having "different views" on the ruling, the only difference was that one guest -- author and self-described "centrist" Sophia Nelson -- claimed to have religious objections to same-sex marriage, even though she still believed that the decision was the correct one based on how she views the law, labeling herself as "mature" for agreeing with the ruling.
After noting that it was "not a happy day" for her because it conflicts with her religious beliefs, Nelson added:
But, as an attorney who is admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States bar, I think it was decided the right way on the merits of the law under the Equal Protection clause, so I can be a mature enough adult, and I think those in the Republican party who share my view are going to have to look at this, kind of, as a split decision, if you will, on, yes, it may be against my faith principles but on the merits of the law the Court probably reached the right decision.
The other Republican guest, Ana Navarro, who is a regular CNN commentator, gushed over the liberal court decision:
I can tell you from a personal point of view I was full of celebration, there was joy in my heart. So many of my gay friends are going to be legitimized in a way that they so want to be. And from a political perspective, I hope Republicans can move on, though I recognize that the religious freedom issue is a legitimate question.
Similarly, during Friday's live CNN coverage of the Supreme Court ruling, viewers were treated to normally right-leaning guests like S.E. Cupp and Margaret Hoover who are known for nevertheless supporting same-sex marriage while conservatives who could have offered a dissenting point of view were absent..
Below is a complete transcript of the segment from the Monday, June 29, Wolf show on CNN:
WOLF BLITZER: Republican reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage ranges from acceptance to anger. While supporters celebrated outside the high court, some presidential candidates promise a new fight for what they call religious liberty. Listen to what Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal said on NBC's Meet the Press.
GOVERNOR BOBBY JINDAL (R-LA): Here's where the next fight is going. I think the left is now going to go after our First Amendment rights. I think it's wrong for the federal government to force Christian individuals, businesses, pastors, churches, to participate in wedding ceremonies that violate our sincerely held religious beliefs. We have to stand up and fight for religious liberty. That's where this fight is going.
BLITZER: Our CNN political commentator Ana Navarro is joining us and the author Sophia Nelson is joining us. They're Republicans, but they have different views on the Supreme Court ruling. Ana, first to you. What do you think of the Republican shift to a fight over religious liberty that several of those Republican presidential candidates are now suggesting?
ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, you know, Wolf, I think the first thing we need to point out is that we shouldn't paint all Republicans with one broad brush. As you said, there's a division amongst Republicans, and, if you look at the statistics, people my age, Republicans my age who are under 49 have over 43 percent of approval rating for gay marriage. If you're even younger, if you are under 30, the approval rating amongst Republicans is 61 percent.
So, you know, yes, we have seen that there's a variation in the way that people have reacted. Some people, I can tell you from a personal point of view I was full of celebration, there was joy in my heart. So many of my gay friends are going to be legitimized in a way that they so want to be. And from a political perspective, I hope Republicans can move on, though I recognize that the religious freedom issue is a legitimate question. And, yes, it's a battle that is just beginning.
BLITZER: What do you think, Sophia? Because I'm told you have a dissenting view on this Supreme Court 5-4 decision rooted in your faith. What would you like to see happen now?
SOPHIA NELSON, FORMER HOUSE GOP COUNSEL: Well, two things, Wolf. I think last week on measure was just a bad week for the GOP on all issues of diversity, whether it was the Confederate flag, whether it was gay marriage, whether it was the horrible massacre in Charleston and dealing with the conversation around race and I think this one caught them flat footed. You know, I think for me and for many millions of Christians in this country we weren't pleased with the ruling as a matter of faith because, as you know, whether you're a Christian, Jewish or Muslim your faith teaches that same-sex marriage, homosexuality and a litany of other issues and sins, by the way, aren't acceptable.
So I think that for us it was not a happy day. But, as an attorney who is admitted to the Supreme Court of the United States bar I think it was decided the right way on the merits of the law under the Equal Protection clause, so I can be a mature enough adult, and I think those in the Republican party who share my view are going to have to look at this, kind of, as a split decision, if you will, on, yes, it may be against my faith principles but on the merits of the law the Court probably reached the right decision.
BLITZER: So basically what you're saying, Sophia, is you agree with some of the more moderate Republicans -- like Jeb Bush, for example -- who are saying, you know what, it's now the law of the land, live with it, as opposed to the Bobby Jindals, the Mike Huckabee's, the Ted Cruz saying there's a way to fight this? Is that right, Sophia?
NELSON: Yeah, Wolf, I mean, I think what Governor Jindal said was utterly ridiculous, you know, let's get rid of the Supreme Court. You can't get rid of the Supreme Court, it's written into the Constitution. And I think the Republican party is going to have to do something very different headed into 2016 and into their own party platform and how they're going make that up. Or are they going to make gay marriage an issue in that platform? Are they going to leave it alone? And I think if they continue to bumble on issues of, again, race, the race discussion around diversity, around issues of gay and gay marriage I think the party is going to have a real difficulty in 2016 reaching the centrist voter like a Sophia Nelson and some others.
BLITZER: Ana, I know you're a Republican, I know you like Jeb Bush. What would you like him to say specifically on the issue of gay marriage?
NAVARRO: You know what, Wolf, I was actually very happy with what he said. I thought he had an inclusive tone, a conciliatory tone. He is against the underlying issue of gay marriage. It's something on which we disagree, which is fine. I don't have the expectation that I'm going to agree with one politician or another on 100 percent of the issues. But I think he was responsible in his tone.
I really was disappointed with Scott walker calling for a constitutional amendment which he knows is absolutely completely utterly unrealistic. I was disappointed with former Rhodes Scholar, for God's sakes, Bobby Jindal, an incredibly smart man, casually nonchalantly calling for the dissolution of the Supreme Court. You know, we can't fall into the trap of using this as a wedge issue.
I think the responsible people need to look for some pragmatism, need to look for some common ground, and we need to find a way so that religious freedom and gay marriage can co-exist. We are a diverse country. We are a Democratic country. We are a pragmatic country. Let us resist the urge to politicize and polarize this issue and let us look for that sliver of common ground.
BLITZER: Ana Navarro, Sophia Nelson, thanks for joining us.
